Did MLB go too far with 'sticky stuff' crackdown? This former hitter thinks so.
Major League Baseball is finally going to enforce the rules that ban pitchers from using foreign substances to doctor the ball while on the mound, but some players think the new policy is an over-correction.
Using "sticky stuff" like pine tar as a grip-enhancement is an ancient practice in the game. In recent years, though, a large amount of pitchers have allegedly been applying some materials — such as the oft-mentioned Spider Tack — to their fingers that have really boosted their performance. Basically, the longer the ball sticks to a pitcher's fingers, the more it spins, and the more it spins, the more it moves, and trying to hit a small object that's traveling close to 100 mph before changing course sharply at the last moment is rather difficult.
The usage is likely a significant factor behind a league-wide offensive swoon this season, so while MLB previously turned a blind eye to what's technically cheating, the league reversed course this week, announcing there will soon be an increase in umpire inspections to suss out foul play. If anyone is caught with pretty much any substance, they'll get slapped with a 10-game suspension.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
At first glance, that's good news for hitters, but Will Middlebrooks, a former MLB third baseman and current analyst for CBS Sports, bristled at the fact that pitchers would face the same punishment for the illegal-but-commonly-used combination of the separately legal sunscreen and rosin as they would for loading up on Spider Tack. Middlebrooks notes the former simply helps pitchers get a better grip on what's a pretty slick baseball and can actually protect batters from getting plunked, while the latter has been found to dramatically increase spin rate.
Middlebrooks' view is a pretty common, it turns out, and there's a chance that the rules will be eventually be updated, but for now it looks the league's all-or-nothing approach could add to the drama it's trying to squash.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
-
5 blustery cartoons about the Stormy Daniels testimony
Cartoons Artists take on gag orders, lurid details, and more
By The Week US Published
-
The Idea of You review: 'impossible escapism' starring Anne Hathaway
The Week Recommends Steamy romcom about a 40-year-old who falls for a boy band singer
By The Week UK Published
-
Crossword: May 11, 2024
The Week's daily crossword
By The Week Staff Published
-
Caitlin Clark the No. 1 pick in bullish WNBA Draft
Speed Read As expected, she went to the Indiana Fever
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
South Carolina ends perfect season with NCAA title
Speed Read The women's basketball team won a victory over superstar Caitlin Clark's Iowa Hawkeyes
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Iowa's Caitlin Clark breaks NCAA scoring record
speed read College basketball star Caitlin Clark set the new record in Iowa's defeat of Ohio State
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Eight-year-old Brit Bodhana Sivanandan makes chess history
Speed Read Sivanandan has been described as a 'phenomenon' by chess masters
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Watch Simone Biles win her record 8th US gymnastics championship
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
Spain beats England 1-0 to win its first Women's World Cup
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
US knocked out of Women's World Cup in stunning exit
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Katie Ledecky surpasses Michael Phelps for most world championship titles
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published